Daddy's little girl
by Efrain Hernandez
Summary: THE DARK KNIGHT RISES PROLOGUE! Post-Batman Begins: A mysterious woman is hired into Wayne Enterprises which will ultimately become Batman's greatest adventure in the years to come. And What did Ra's think about just before his death? READ AND REVIEW!


Due to recent events many fans of the series have found out several major spoilers in the next film through internet news sites and the reception has been...fantastic. This will be a fine ending to a fine series. Here is my personal take on several key characters of THE DARK KNIGHT RISES and while I hope there are some of you who are equally excited about this character and their relationship with everyone else in Gotham, I hope that the rest of you will enjoy this "teaser" just as much. When I wrote this story I had felt deep sadness for this person and the struggle they must have faced after BATMAN BEGINS. So much emotional tension and it's all under our noses. Enjoy the fan-fic and please write back. Let me know what you think! Thanks!

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><p><strong>DADDY'S LITTLE GIRL<strong>

Written by Efrain Hernandez

_"You've finally learned to do what is necessary."_

_"I won't kill you but I don't have to save you..."_

Batman was carried with the wind before he could react and as he glanced at his oncoming demise Ra's al Ghul closed his eyes and breathed in slowly. Time had stopped for a moment, then an image flashed upon his head and upon viewing it he knew all would be well.

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><p>Several days later...<p>

"Miss Tate? Right this way please." An African American woman in her late-20's opened a large oak door and allowed another woman to enter. A nameplate next to the door read LUCIOUS FOX, BUSINESS EXECUTIVE.

The African American woman sat down behind a desk which was fairly close to the heavy doors and eyed it as it shut closed. Her own nameplate read JESSICA FOX, EXECUTIVE SECRETARY. She looked at the gentlemen who escorted the visitor to the top floor of Wayne Tower and thanked them for their help. The gentlemen, looking more like security guards, smiled back and returned to their post on the first floor. The African American woman understood their purpose and that after the recent events she knew it was expected. Never before had anyone tried to attack the Tower using the water system that ran below it. Luckily neither she nor her own father were anywhere near the building when the terrorist attack happened.

She bit the tip of a pen she was holding and wondered about the night it did happen. She waited for her father to return home and as she watched the disaster happening both in the narrows and down the Gotham Monorail she begin to worry. Had her father not rushed back home to comfort her she would've nearly called the police. Then she realized the police had their own problems. Her father never gave her a straight answer as to where he had been that evening. She wondered about Bruce Wayne's birthday dinner and then about his return to the lab here at Wayne tower. She looked at large doors and wondered.

Inside the room an aging man leaned against his massive work desk to shake the hand of the woman that was entering. He smiled warmly and began reading a folder with her name on the front tab: MIRANDA TATE. The woman sat down on a leather chair directly in front of Lucious. She gently caressed the leather arm and the brass tacks that held the chair together.

"I'm impressed that you've managed to make it this far, Miss Tate. I don't need to see your resume to see a person of fine work ethic." Lucious beamed at her. "If Mister Wayne thinks you're a fine fit for our family here at Wayne Enterprises then so do I. Welcome to the team Miss Tate."

Lucious extended his hand to the woman sitting on the leather chair. Her large, shiny, brown eyes looked at him kindly. Behind Lucious was an enormous window overlooking Gotham City and a bright sky yet his announcement made him shine brilliantly. She shook his hand and thanked him. On her lap the woman held a white envelope on her lap.

Lucious noticed a peculiar blue flower pinned onto her lapel.

"But before we can accept you as a Board Member we'll need your help first in our Public Philanthropic Initative. It's a sub-division of PR but I wouldn't worry about them interfering too much. A little experience down there can mean a lot up here. Is that going to be OK with you Miss Tate?"

"Yes, of course," the woman replied.

Lucious was surprised by the slight accent in her voice. He couldn't place exactly what the accent was.

"Fantastic! Y'know my own daughter works just outside this door. You've met her," Lucious motioned towards the door. "Having one of your own just a few feet away is a luxury not even the richest men can afford. I know it may seem like a drag to some daughters but I get the feeling we work out alright."

The woman caught Lucious staring into the large doors as if he was observing his own daughter.

"Sometimes I find myself thinking that she's not _Daddy's little girl_ any longer but that's how life goes. Things must change."

"It is a very special thing to keep your own daughter close to your heart," the woman spoke with sophistication. "My own father treated me like the prize of the world and to this day I've continued to follow in his footsteps."

"Oh, your father works in trade?"

The woman shook her head. "He is also a philanthropist…of a different sort."

"Wonderful to hear that, maybe Mister Wayne can meet him one day."

"He already has," the woman's voice became thin. "Which brings me to this…"

The woman handed Lucious the white envelope.

"What's this?"

"A request for several days out of the country."

"Normally you show some diligence before requesting any special consideration-"

"My father died only a few nights ago. I wish to see him receive a proper burial. I know I've barely stepped foot onto this building-"

"It's alright Miss Tate. Take the week off."

"Thank you Mister Fox. When I return I will be more than confident that we can get straight to work on your initiative." The woman stood up, shook his hand and started her way towards the door.

"Before you leave, could you quickly explain to me what your definition of our initiative is? What would be your vision?" Lucious listened carefully to the words that came next.

The woman looked back at him. Her ruby lips smiled and her eyes shined as she replied back.

"To reach into Gotham City and make the wrong right again, to change the lives of the citizens of Gotham City by showing them a new future…to let them give birth to a new age in Justice. Everyone will feel our touch. No one will be overlooked. Those who have fallen will rise. It's what my father would have wanted."

Lucious smiled again. "Like I said...I wouldn't have picked anyone else for the job. See you in a week Miss Tate."

"Thank you Mister Fox and goodbye." The woman closed the door behind her. On her way out she stopped by Jessica desk and handed her the blue flower that was pinned onto her lapel.

"Oh?" Jessica admired the flower and smiled thankfully.

"It's a Himalayan Blue Poppy of the Genus Meconopsis; a beautiful work of art. It's an interesting fact to note that even under the harshest winters, the worst of stress, and the darkest of times…the flower continues to survive. Out of the entire flora this is my beloved." She dropped the flower into a small glass bowl that was already filled with carnations. "Not many have seen it in their lifetimes…and now they can."

She looked up to thank her again but the woman was already gone. There came a DING and out from the executive elevator Bruce Wayne walked towards his office, followed by several board members, which was located right next to Lucious Fox's own. Bruce walked up to Jessica and smiled. She smiled back with much more glimmer in her eyes than necessary, remembering the intimate moment they had shared days prior over a lesson of golf.

"Good afternoon Mister Wayne!"

"Good afternoon J-" Bruce stopped himself as she approached the blue flower on her desk.

"Is everything alright?"

The board members behind him watched quietly. Bruce nodded.

"Send memos, Jess. I'd like to congregate with the other members on what to do with monorail."

"Right away Mister Wayne."

Bruce left her desk but the image of the blue flower grew into a forest of ideas. Ra's' voice echoed within his thoughts. Perhaps he hadn't done what was necessary, he wondered. Perhaps he missed something...someone. In his mind he remembered his mentor; a friend from long ago. The memory became a relapse into an abyss of dialogue. However the friendly voice was no longer warm like Henri's but ferocious and ominous like a demon and it frightened him.

__We have infiltrated every level of its infrastructure._..  
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**THE END**


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